Dr Stuart Davis, OUR Sustainability Manager, has won New Zealand’s highest horticulture honour being named the Bledisloe Cup recipient for 2024.
The Bledisloe Cup is awarded by Horticulture New Zealand annually in recognition of individuals who have made an outstanding and meritorious contribution to the horticulture industry in New Zealand over decades.
Dr Stuart Davis is recognised for outstanding and meritorious contribution to the industry. Dr Davis has played a significant role in the vegetable sector for more than 35 years, championing the introduction of science and innovation to enhance sustainable vegetable production.
Stuart started his career in the Wattie’s group, then moved to LeaderBrand in Gisborne with an interlude with Sutherland Produce, before returning to LeaderBrand in Pukekohe.
He has been a Director of Vegetables NZ and Chair of the Vegetable Research and Innovation Board and has had many leading roles in many industry projects especially in integrated pest and disease management.
Currently, he’s the Industry Stakeholder Advisory Group Chair for A Lighter Touch. This is pan-sector programme that addresses the challenge of meeting consumer demands for safe plant-based foods produced under sustainable pest management programmes whilst also caring for the environment.
Our CEO, Richard Burke says that everyone in the team is delighted to see Stuart’s years of dedication to the industry being acknowledged today.
“There is nothing Stuart doesn’t know about growing vegetables. Over the last 30 years I have worked alongside him, his knowledge and dedication has made him an integral member of the team.
“In every role, Stuart has been instrumental in initiating research, science, and innovation into understanding the relationships of vegetable farming with the environment and developing new thinking on sustainable methods of crop protection.
“He’s also been a strong champion for the industry bodies, sitting on several horticultural organisations championing the industry with government and councils. He has dedicated many hours to the cause and worked tirelessly in all his roles, always having the industry’s best interests at heart.
“He has managed technical and operational areas here at LeaderBrand Gisborne before moving to our Pukekohe farm to ensure our environmental projects are on track and getting done. He manages everything from our Regenerative Farming Project, riparian planting, biodiversity project, our emissions, nitrogen, and water efficiency projects and so much more.
“All the of team are thrilled that Stuart has been honoured for his services to our industry and in particular for his commitment to the environment. There is no one more deserving of this honour,” says Richard Burke.
Dr Stuart Davis says that he’s enjoyed so many good connections with growers, consultants and researchers working on collaborative projects that made a difference to our industry.
“I am also grateful that I have had employers that granted me the license to do industry-good work and especially proud to bring the Bledisloe Cup back to LeaderBrand in our company’s 50th year.”